Portland Observer, May 6 1982 Page 7
Multicultural curriculum in the PPS
(Editors note: This is the first o f a
series o f articles provided by the
Portland Public School d 1st I i d Io
explain the progress o f its desegre
gation plan.)
by James Fenwick, Deputy Supt.
Portland Public Schools
Enriched instructional programs
designed to give Portland’s children
a better sense of their "roots” and
their identities in contemporary so
ciety and in the world will be firmly
in place in all Portland Public
School classrooms when school
opens this fall.
For the past two years, school ad
ministrators. teachers, consultants
and scholars have combined their
energies and skills in writing, field
testing and revising multicultural
curriculum materials to complete
the task by September of 1982.
These materials in six subject
areas— language arts, math, social
studies, science, o il auu music—arc
intended to convey better under
standing o f American history and
culture and higher appreciation for
the rich contributions made by per
sons from many different ethnic and
cultural backgrounds.
Achieving this goal— total inte
gration of an enriched multicultural
curriculum into the 3,000 class
rooms in the Portland school system
— has been a major goal of the dis
trict since adoption of the Compre
hensive Desegregation Plan in April
of 1980.
W hile expanding m ulticultural
education programs has long been
an essential component of the dis
trict's curriculum planning, the em
phasis to achieve this goal has been
measurably increased the past two
years. Teachers and staff have
committed thousands o f hours to
building a stronger m ulticultural
curriculum . The district has also
committed substantial dollar re
sources to realize this goal.
The district curriculum depart
ment approached the assignment
with creativity and innovation.
Traditional response to renewed
interest in multicultural education in
most school districts has been to ap
propriate funds and order new text
books. The Portland Public School
curriculum department staff, how
ever, did not feel the improvements
mandated by the comprehensive
plan could be accomplished merely
by acquiring additional texts.
Instead, the curriculum staff de
cided to adopt a process that re
quired extensive changes, revisions
and additions in the district curricu
lum documents which define what
teachers are to teach. It was gener
ally fel, that by taking this direction
greater control of the re-emphasis
on m ulticultural education pro
grams would be retained at the local
level where it could be most easily
adjusted and modified by the com
munity and the schools.
The first step in this revitalization
campaign was to revise for each sub
ject the general education plan
which defines the nature and extent
of the subject matter to be taught
and describes how the content is in
terrelated.
A fter prelim inary revisions of
curriculum materials were made,
experts with specialized knowledge
in the field of multicultural educa
tion were called in as consultants.
Foremost among these resource
persons was Asa Hilliard, nationally
recognized expert and prime consul
tant for all aspects of the Compre
hensive Desegregation Plan. Dr.
H illiard made immense contribu
tions to the final plan.
One expert for the local commu
nity was Darrell Millner of the Port
land State University Black Studies
Department. A major contribution
of Dr. Millner was a report recom
mending content additions in the
social studies curriculum.
Another resource person was Car
los Cortes of the University of Cali
fornia at Riverside. Dr. Cortes is a
widely published author in the field
of multi cultural education.
Concepts relative to the contribu
tion of Hispanic Americans to
American society were provided by
Luis Machorro, then a staff person
with Committee of Spanish Speak
ing People of Oregon (COSSPO).
Significant input for the music
curriculum was provided by Bar
bara Lundquist, ethnomusicologist
at the University of Washington.
Other contributors to the revision
process were personnel from the In
dian Education and ESL Bilingual
departments o f the Portland
schools. S ta ff members from the
Sex and Race Desegregation Center
at Portland State University were
also actively involved.
The first curriculum plans were
field tested in the fall of 1981 in the
district by all teachers o f social
studies, history, language arts, art
and music. In addition, community
members who had contributed input
and members of the Desegregation
Monitoring Advisory Committee re
ceived copies of the materials.
A t the recommedation of Dr. H il
liard, additional nationally recog
nized authorities on the contribu
tions o f blacks and other minorities
to the mainstream of American life
were invited to participate in the
curriculum development program.
His recommendation that the pro
cess be broadened to include the
contribution o f minorities to the
curricular areas of math and science
was followed, also.
These authorities worked with the
district, starting in 1981: Ivan Van
Sertima, professor, Rutgers Univer
sity (social studies); Harold Cour-
lander, scholar in the fields of A fri
can and A fro -A m erican folklore
(language arts); John Henrik
Clarke, professor, Hunter College
(social studies); Clyde Taylor, pro
fessor, M ills College (language
arts); Julian Euell, director o f edu
cation, Smithsonian Institution
(music); Nelson Stevens, University
o f Massachusetts (a rt); Michael
Harris, Morehouse College, Atlanta
(art); McKinley Burt, independent
consultant, Portland (mathematics);
Hunter Adams I I I , Argon Labora
tories, Chicago (mathematics); Bea
trice Lumpkin, Malcolm X College,
Chicago (science).
Their testimony has been
gathered and now the weighty pro
cess of transferring the input of con
sultants into the materials and into
the classroom is underway.
The first field-tested documents
are being revised, utilizing the mass
o f expert testimony and advice the
process has yielded. The final plans
will be completed in time for use this
fall.
The final step, integrating the new
curricula into the classroom, is the
responsibility o f a team o f indivi-
duals already designated in each
building. Each elementary school
team includes the principal, a teach
er and the lib rary/m ed ia person.
They have been trained in the use of
the new curriculum documents and
will conduct staff orientation.
High school department chairmen
will conduct the orientation at that
level.
We believe we have met the chal
lenge mandated by the communi.v
and by the Board o f Education to
provide a curriculum that is multi
cultural. The district has done much
pioneering along the way these past
two years, blazing trails which we
expect other school districts nation
ally to follow. Our new curricular
materials will be models of others to
emulate.
But more important than the in
novations in education is our expec
tation that ail students will have a
better understanding of the histori
cal, scientific and cultural contribu
tions o f black people and other
minorities in American society
today.
Bartlett Berlin
is pleased to announce
the establishment of
Tuxedo Catering
Offering formal trained service, appoint
ments, and classically prepared French
cuisine for your next at-nome dinner
party. Be it business, friends or romance,
your evening should be yours to enjoy.
Competitive rates; special fee for
newlyweds or newly-in-iove. Etiquette or
wine consultation by phone at no charge.
Formal/lnformal
Service
Classic French
Cuisine
Wine Consultation
Butler Services
Bartending
Tuxedo
Catering
BARTLETT BERLIN
503-226-4606
D in n er for 2-12
PEOPLE WHO DONT ATTEND
DUS SCHOOL MAT GET THEIR
OWN PRMDE
The best time to learn about the
coming changes in Tri-Met is now* Before
they happen. And where might one ac
quire this valuable knowledge, firsthand?
Aboard one of the big yellow Bus School
buses Tri-Met has set up throughout ¿ 3 ? s
the greater Portland area.
- "
Five or ten minutes at Bus
School and you’ll learn things that
will take you far in life.
M EET OUR FRIENDLY
NEW FARE INSPECTORS.
One of the most important
lessons taught at Bus School is
that, after Septem ber 5th, our
drivers will no longer keep tabs on
everybody s fares and tickets.
Does this mean our new
Self-Service policy relies completely <
on the honor system?
Uh, not quite. (While we know
you wouldn’t consider trying to sneak a
free ride, we do worry a little about the
other guy.)
Enter the Fare Inspector. And he
or she will enter every bus now and then
just to make sure all riders are paying
their fare. Fair and square.
30 DAYS OF BREAD AND WATER?
Here’s how it will work. After Sep
tem ber 5th, all passengers will have to
have proper “Prtxrf of Payment" with
them at all times. In simpler term s, this
just means a valid ticket or Monthly Pass.
(At Bus School you’ll learn about some
handy new ways to pay.)
When the Fare Inspector strolls by,
you'll simply show him your "Proof of
Payment." No big deal.
As for the few folks who try to
fudge, well, they won’t exactly be sen
tenced to hard labor, but they can be as
sessed a surcharge fare of $20. For repeat
offenders, it may go up to $250.
Not to
mention (but we
will) the considerable embarrassm ent of
being "nabbed” in front of a busload of
paying passengers. Tsk, tsk, tsk.
THINGS WILL MOVE
SMOOTHER FOR EVERYONE.
EXCEPT THE CHEATERS.
About this time, many of you may
be calmly asking yourself, "Why in the
*!@ # are they doing all this?”
The answer, in a word: Efficiency.
After studying similar system s in
Europe we know self-service will make
boarding and riding our buses more con
venient, more efficient for you. And, by
allowing us to move more riders on and
off the buses more quickly, it will also
ATTEND TH E TEN-MINUTE BUS SCHOOL NEAREST YOU.
TUESDAY. APRIL 27-M AY 1
1. Fred M eyer— Beaverton
2. Lloyd Center
TUESDAY, MAY 4 MAY 8
1. Fred M eyer— Tigard
2. Jantzen Reach Mall
TUESDAY, MAY 11 MAY 15
1. Fred M eyer— Gresham
2. Clackamas Town Center
TUESDAY, MAY 18 MAY 22
1. Natl. Trans Week Swan Island
•2. Pioneer Square
TUESDAY, MAY 25 MAY 29
1. Fred M eyer— Stadium
2. Oregon City Shopping Ctr.
TUESDAY, JUNE 1-JUNE5
1. Fred M eyer— Hollywood
2. Tanasbourne Mall
I ' I M ' W H NB 8 JUNE 12
1. Fred M eyer— Thalatin
2. Rose Festival
TUESDAY, JUNE 15-JUNE 19
1. Fred M eyer— Gltsan
2. Washington Square
H 'F>UAY, JU N E 22-JUNE 26
I
F le d M eyer
Raleigh Hills
2. Lloyd Center
TUESDAY, JUNE 29-JULY 3
1 F. Meyer— 39th A Hawthorne
2. Clackamas Town Center
TUESDAY, JULY 6-JULY 10
I Fred Meyer — Oak Grove
2. Jantzen Beach Mall
I I I M>AY, JULY 13 JULY 17
1 Fred Meyer — Interstate
2. Tanasbourne Mall
IU FS D A Y . JULY
JULY 24
1 Fred M eyer— G resham
2 Washington Square
TUESDAY, JULY 27-JULY 31
1. Fred M eyer— Gltsan
2. Beaverton Mall
* Pioneer Square u bedulcd 11 am-A 30 pm
Tbr» Sat All other location» 12 noon
7 :30pm TW » Sat
make things more efficient for us.
Which, in the long run, will save
both of us money. Because the more we
can economize, the more we can keep fu
ture fare increases to a minimum. (Some
studies say w e’ll be able to trim our
operating costs by about $2 million in the
first year of operation alone.)
YOU’RE GONNA LIKE
WHAT YOU LEARN.
Fare Inspectors aren’t the only im
provement we’re making. There will also
be new zones, more convenient tickets
and improved Eastside routes. Entirely
too much to cover in one newspaper ad.
Just right, however, for a brief ses
sion at Bus School.
So check the schedule and plan to
attend. The tuition is free, the course
takes about ten minutes and you’ll
graduate with honors. Best of all you’ll be
able to pass the September 5th final
exam. Without any private tutoring.
TRI-MET
ON SEPTEMBER STH TRI-MET GOES A WHOLE NEW ROUTE.
SPEEDY SELF- SERVICE ■ HANDY NEW TICKETS MORE FAIR FARES • DIRECT EASTSIDE ROUTES
t
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